This invention relates to a Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) environment wherein, for example, a user can enter a command at his computer terminal for a call to be made to a destination number.
Examples of such CTI environments are disclosed in the articles xe2x80x9cIntroduction to Computer Telephony Integrationxe2x80x9d, by A. Catchpole, G. Crook, and D. Chesterman, British Telecommunications Engineering, July 1995; xe2x80x9cComputer Telephony Integrationxe2x80x94The Meridian Norstarxe2x80x9d, by A. Catchpole, British Telecommunications Engineering, October 1995; xe2x80x9cComputer Telephony Integrationxe2x80x94The Meridian 1 PBXxe2x80x9d, by P. Johnson, A. Catchpole, and L. Booton, British Telecommunications Engineering, July 1996; xe2x80x9cCallscapexe2x80x94Computer Telephony Integration for the Small Businessxe2x80x9d, by G. Hillson, G. Hardcastle, and M. Allington, British Telecommunications Engineering, January 1997, and xe2x80x9cCall Centresxe2x80x94Doing Business by Telephonexe2x80x9d by M. Bonner, British Telecommunications Engineering, July 1994.
CTI is particularly useful in call centres, and International Application Number PCT/GB96/00727 (Publication Number WO 96/31044) in the name of BRITISH TELECOMMUNICATIONS public limited company (BT) discloses an ACD suite in a call centre such as BT""s national telephone account management operation.
In such a call centre, if an agent wants to be connected to the number of a target customer, for example a potential customer in a telesales mode of the call centre, the agent sends a xe2x80x9cmake callxe2x80x9d command to the call control apparatus. If the agent is allowed to specify a desired number, referred to as the target number, then he will insert this into the command. Otherwise, upon receipt of a make call command that does not contain a target number, the call control apparatus will generate a suitable number using a sales program as is known in the art. The call control apparatus will then send to the switching system a command containing a target number and the number of an extension which is to be joined to the external call to the target customer. The extension and the target customer are now connected together by the switching system so that the agent may speak to the target customer. Depending upon the control program of the switching system, this is effected by any one of a number of known ways. For example, in one way the switching system makes an external call to the supplied target number, and, when the target customer answers, then makes a call to the extension, and joins the two calls when the agent answers the call to the extension, and in another way the switching system makes a single call from the extension to the target number.
If the call control apparatus has registered an association between the agent and an extension number other than the number of the telephone terminal that is associated with the computer terminal to form a workstation, as is known in the art, then the wrong agent will be connected to the target customer.
In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of registering the identity of a telephone terminal in association with the identity of a computer terminal, the method comprising the steps of:
providing to a user of the computer terminal, via that computer terminal, the identity of a predetermined destination terminal number;
answering a call made to that predetermined destination terminal number;
receiving at that predetermined destination terminal number the identity of a telephone terminal from which that call was made;
providing to the user, via that computer terminal, a codeword;
receiving at that predetermined destination terminal data provided by the user via that telephone terminal;
comparing the received data with the provided codeword; and
if there is a match, registering the identity of that telephone terminal in association with the identity of that computer terminal.
The secure registration in accordance with the present invention of a telephone terminal with a computer terminal brings advantages in a number of fields.
In a call centre, since the call control apparatus registers the identity of the telephone terminal that makes the call, herein referred to as a registration call, to the predetermined destination terminal number, in this particular case an extension of the switching system, it will normally be only the agent at the computer terminal who will know the codeword, e.g. from the screen display, and who will make the registration call from his chosen terminal, which may be the extension at the workstation, or it may be his mobile telephone. Therefore, unless a situation is contrived in which a registration call, using that particular codeword, is made to the predetermined extension from a terminal other than a terminal which will be normally answered by the agent, the call control apparatus will always register the correct telephone terminal identity in association with the computer terminal and the agent identity.
In a conventional office environment, a user can use his computer terminal to request an outgoing call, and a CTI controller will command a PABX serving the office to make a call from the extension registered in association with that computer terminal.
The present invention also makes receipt of incoming calls secure. For example, a remote originator can either request registration information from a user""s computer terminal, or be sent it unsolicited, and make a call to the telephone number of that registration information, i.e. the identity of the telephone terminal associated with that computer terminal. Depending upon the particular commands used in the signalling protocol, the identity of the telephone terminal may be the sole information in a message sent to the remote originator, or it may be associated with other information.
The registration information may be stored in the computer terminal, or it may be stored remote from the computer terminal, for example in a host computer associated with the computer terminal.
The step of providing the identity of a predetermined destination terminal number may be performed upon detection of a make call command made via that computer terminal.
In accordance with a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for registering the identity of a telephone terminal in association with the identity of a computer terminal, the system comprising:
means to provide to a user of the computer terminal, via that computer terminal, the identity of a predetermined destination terminal number;
means to answer a call made to that predetermined destination terminal number;
means to receive the identity of a telephone terminal from which that call was made;
means to provide to the user, via that computer terminal, a codeword;
means to receive data provided by the user via that telephone terminal;
means to compare the received data with the provided codeword; and
means responsive to a match between the received data and the provided codeword to register the received identity of that telephone terminal in association with the identity of that computer terminal.
The means to provide the identity of a predetermined destination terminal number may be arranged such as to provide said identity of a predetermined destination terminal number upon detection of a make call command invoked by the user.
The means to provide the identity of a predetermined destination terminal number; the means to provide to the user, via that computer terminal, a codeword; the comparing means; and the registering means together may constitute a subsystem; and
the answering means; the means to receive the identity of a telephone terminal; and the means to receive data provided by the user together may constitute a separate subsystem.